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While the number of hookah bars in Astoria has been steadily increasing, Sissy's sticks to a more old-school template. The bar — run by a wry, biting bartender named Mary — has no use for drink specials and traffics in a muted vibe appropriate more for solitary imbibing than rowdy carousing. Filled with dark wooden tables and stools, and a bit too big to be considered cozy, it mostly echoes the old country, with a blue stain-glass front window. One of the walls has been transformed into a massive chalkboard, showcasing the menu, drink list, and events calender. — Irina Gusin